Latest Rodent Stories
Naked Mole Rat, the Only Known Cancerless Animal, Has Two-Tier Defense Against CancerDespite a 30-year lifespan that gives ample time for cells to grow cancerous, a small rodent species called a naked mole rat has never been found with tumors of any kind"”and now biologists at the University of Rochester think they know why.The findings, presented in today's issue of The Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, show that the mole rat's cells express a gene called p16 that makes the...
After two years of research over five degraded landscapes in the National Park of Sierra Nevada (Granada), scientists have established for the first time that field mice base their diet on holm oak and pine seeds, causing a deterioration of the habitats and an extension of scrubland in the forests.The trees in the forests such as the holm oaks, rowans and pines have unexpected predators which are impeding their expansion over the mountains. In 98.5% of cases it is field mice and other...
Not only the world-famous primeval horse browsed at the shores of the lake in the warm, wet climate prevailing at that time (average annual temperature, 25°C). Around Lake Messel, which emerged in a volcanic crater and was surrounded back then by dense primeval forest, lived early ungulates and rodents; the ancestors of today's birds flew over the cloudy water; insects buzzed through the air; and cold-blooded reptiles basked lazily in the sun. 47 million years ago, Messel was located at...
Changes in the head shape and overall size of rodents has been linked to human population density and climate change, a Chicago researcher said. The size and head shape of rodents has shifted substantially during the last 100 years, with some larger and some smaller, Oliver Pergams, a researcher at the University of Chicago said in a statement released Friday. Pergams studied 1,300 specimen rodents from museums around the world, including Chicago's Field Museum and the Smithsonian...
You probably hadn't noticed -- but the head shape and overall size of rodents has been changing over the past century. A University of Illinois at Chicago ecologist has tied these changes to human population density and climate change.The finding is reported by Oliver Pergams, UIC research assistant professor of biological sciences, in the July 31 issue of PLoS One.Pergams said that such size-and-shape changes in mammals, occurring around the world in less than a century, are quite...
Study published in the journal Comptes Rendus PalevolAn international team of scientists has discovered an extinct rodent species, based on fossil tooth remains found in Alborache, Valencia. Eomyops noeliae, from the Eomyidae family, represents the oldest find within this genus in the world.The small number of fossils found has prevented the scientists from the University of Valencia (UV), who have led this research study, from being able to gain a full picture of this "new"...
In the rat race of life, one thing is certain: there's no place like home. Now, a study just released in Molecular Ecology finds the same is true for rats. Although inner city rodents appear to roam freely, most form distinct neighborhoods where they spend the majority of their lives.Like any major city, Baltimore has many lively neighborhoods "“ each with its own personality. But scientists from the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health say humans aren't the only Baltimoreans...
New article in the FASEB Journal shows that a gene in the 'dirty rat' holds a secret for the renewed war on cancerIf someone ever calls you a "dirty rat," consider it a compliment. A new discovery published online in the FASEB Journal (http://www.fasebj.org) shows that cellular mechanisms used by the blind mole rat to survive the very low oxygen environment of its subterranean niche are the same as those that tumors use to thrive deep in our tissues. The net effect of this discovery...
Using a borrowed spy satellite to spot this species' distinctive burrow entrances, researchers track their numbers in hopes of protecting biodiversity on the Carrizo Plain in south-central California The Carrizo Plain National Monument in south-central California is the largest single native grassland remaining in the state. One of its denizens is a small creature known as the giant kangaroo rat, which has spent decades on both the federal and state endangered species lists while eking...
For the first time ever, scientists will use satellites in space to monitor the fluctuations of endangered species populations.The scientists will use satellite photos to count and monitor giant kangaroo rats, a key indicator for the health of a dry plains environment. The photos will be obtained from the same satellites the Israeli defense forces use, and will be compared with 30 years of satellite images released this month by the U.S. Geological Survey. Researchers aim to use this data...
Latest Rodent Reference Libraries
The African pygmy mouse (Mus minutoides) can be found in the sub-Saharan areas of Africa. This mouse, perhaps the smallest of all rodents, can also be found living as pets around the world. Being social creatures, African pygmy mice will live in colonies preferably around water in grassy areas. When kept as pets, the mice cannot be left alone. Although the underbelly of the African pygmy mouse is a pale white, the rest of fur is colored reddish orange. The triangular ears, although small,...
The Patagonian Mara, Dolichotis patagonum, is a relatively large rodent found in Central and Southern Argentina. Maras inhabit arid grasslands and scrub desert. Maras like to live in burrows and will occasionally inhabit burrows that already exist from other animals. They are herbivorous. The Patagonian Mara is from the Family Caviidae, which includes cavies, such as their larger relative the capybara, and guinea pigs. Patagonian Maras are closely related to the other member of the...
The Little Swan Island Hutia, Geocapromys thoracatus, was native to Little Swan Island, off north-eastern Honduras in the Caribbean. The ancestors of the species may have been carried to the island from Jamaica, 5,000-7,000 years ago. It may have been a subspecies of the Jamaican hutia (Geocapromys browni). The Little Swan Island Hutia was a slow-moving, guinea pig-like rodent and probably emerged from caves and limestone crevices to forage on bark, small twigs and leaves. It was fairly...
The African Pouched Rat, Cricetomys emini, also known as Emin's Rat, is a large rodent in the muroid super family. It is related to the Gambian Pouched Rat. They are native to Africa and are found along the edges of forests and along the plains. Emin's rats are actually better climbers than their better known Gambian pouch rat cousins. These pouched rats are named for having cheek pouches much like a hamster. The African Pouched Rat has a distinct line of color difference between their...
Chinchillas and their relative's viscachas are small, twilight rodents native to the Andes Mountains in South America. They belong to the family Chinchillidae. Chinchilla fur is considered the softest in the world and is thirty times softer than human hair. Chinchillas must regularly bathe in dust or volcanic ash to remove oil and moisture that gathers in their thick fur. They have the highest fur density of any land animal with more than 20,000 hairs per square cm. Their fur is so dense...
